Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2009-10: A product of the Valley Junior Warriors youth program in Massachusetts, Sam Kurker skated for the varsity team at St. John’s Prep in Massachusetts as a sophomore.

2010-11: Kurker skated for the Junior Bruins AAA tournament team and was the third-leading scorer for St. John’s Prep as a junior. He scored 20 goals with 17 assists. In the Super 8 playoffs he scored 2 goals with 5 assists as St. John’s reached the Super 8 championship game, falling to Malden Catholic in overtime.

2011-12: Kurker was a team captain for St. John’s Prep as a senior after attending USA Hockey’s Select 17 Camp and representing the USA at the 2011 U18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament. In 24 games for St. John’s he scored 32 goals with 28 assists. In three games at the Ivan Hlinka tournament he was plus-1 with 4 penalty minutes. Kurker committed to playing college hockey at Boston University. He was invited to the NHL Draft Combine and ranked 36th amongst North American skaters in Central Scouting’s final rankings prior to the 2012 NHL Draft.

2012-13: Kurker played 35 games for Boston University as a freshman. Skating much of the season on the third line with senior Ben Rosen and fellow freshman Matthew Lane, he scored 3 goals with 2 assists and was minus-10; finishing third on the Terriers with 61 penalty minutes. Boston University finished tied for third in Hockey East but did not receive an NCAA tournament bid despite falling to first-place Massachusetts-Lowell, 1-0, in the Hockey East Championship Game.

2013-14: Kurker played 12 games for Boston University as a sophomore — leaving school in January to play for Indiana in the USHL. He scored 1 goal and was minus-2 with 14 penalty minutes while skating for the Terriers. Kurker scored 6 goals with 8 assists and was plus-3 with 45 penalty minutes in 24 regular season games with the Ice. Indiana finished first in the Eastern Conference and won the USHL’s Clark Cup; defeating Western Conference champ Waterloo in the finals. Kurker scored 3 goals with 3 assists and was plus-4 with 6 penalty minutes in 12 playoff games. Indiana suspended operations following the season and Kurker signed with Sioux City for the 2014-15 season in May 2014.

2014-15: Kurker played for the USHL’s Sioux City Musketeers as a 20-year-old. He scored 24 goals with 25 assists in 56 games and had an even plus/minus, finishing third on the Musketeers with 86 penalty minutes. Sioux City finished first in the Western Conference, falling to eventual Clark Cup champion Sioux Falls in a first-round playoff series. Kurker had 2 assists and was -3 with 18 penalty minutes in five playoff games.

2015-16: Kurker returned to college hockey, skating for Hockey East champion Northeastern University. In 41 games he scored 6 goals with 12 assists and was +1 with 50 penalty minutes. The Huskies started the year 1-11-2 before turning things around, finishing sixth in the regular season and then winning the Hockey East tournament to earn an NCAA berth. Northeastern defeated Massachusetts-Lowell, 3-2, in the Hockey East championship game before falling to eventual National champion North Dakota, 6-2, in the NCAA Midwest Regional semifinals.

Talent Analysis

Kurker is a power forward-type player with a bit of offensive ability and some grit to his game. He doesn't create offense with skill but rather more via his size and hustle. After being overwhelmed a bit in making the jump directly from prep school to college hockey, Kurker has been scoring consistently at the USHL level as a 20-year-old. He will have an opportunity to prove he can compete at a higher level when he skates for Northeastern University in 2015-16.

Future

Kurker returned to college hockey in 2015-16, skating for Northeastern University. Playing in a lower line role and chipping in offensively at times for a balanced Huskies team that reached the NCAA tournament, he has not displayed the consistent scoring expected of a former second-round pick but plays a strong two-way game. He has one year of NCAA eligibility left and is expected to return to Northeastern. His progress to this point suggests he can be a sound, lower line forward.

Photo: St. Louis prospect Mackenzie MacEachern had three tough seasons in East Lansing, but the team’s leading scorer proved his skill and character (courtesy of Dave Reginek/Getty Images)

The St. Louis Blues have several European defensemen in the pipeline and a few are making a name for themselves in Europe. Finnish goaltender Ville Husso is certainly the biggest name in terms of talent in Europe but the Blues have never shied away from drafting international players. The team has had great success scouting various European leagues over its history, including 1978’s selection of Risto Siltanen, and 1995’s picks of Michal Handzus and Jochen Hecht. Not all their European picks have ended up playing for the Blues, but those that have recently (Jori Lehtera, Patrik Berglund, Dmitrij Jaskin, and Vladimir Tarasenko to name a few) are impact players in the NHL. Read more»

Photo: St. Louis Blues prospect Ivan Barbashev scored 58 goals and 119 points last season in all his QMJHL action, and has been good and reasonably prolific as a rookie pro (courtesy of Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

The St. Louis Blues have a plethora of talented prospects and many of them play in the AHL. While a few have received NHL opportunities over the last year, others are still finding their footing at the ripe age of 21 or 22. The goaltending prospects are incredibly talented and the defensive group looks very promising. At forward, the Blues have plenty of big names on the prospect front but will be patient with their development. Several of these young players will benefit from larger opportunities which will likely happen at the minor league level.

Photo: Although it is early in the season, St. Louis Blues prospect Austin Poganski risks taking a step back from his impressive freshman season at the University of North Dakota (courtesy of Michael Tureski/Icon Sportswire)

The St. Louis Blues have plenty of young talents in their pipeline and several of their prospects opened the 2015-16 campaign at the pro level. In terms of positional depth, the Blues possess a deep group of goaltenders and continue to find ways to replenish their defensive prospects. While a few positions boast high-end talent, overall depth on the wings needs to be addressed – especially after several players already made the jump to the NHL over the last few seasons.

Photo: Providence College forward and Calgary Flames prospect Mark Jankowski will be an important player in his school’s quest to win back-to-back NCAA championships (courtesy of Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire)

This season, no NCAA hockey conference features more NHL prospects than the Hockey East Association (HEA). 62 drafted players representing all 12 member schools will be in action in the 2015-16 season with Boston College leading all Hockey East teams with 13 prospects, followed by Boston University with 10 and Notre Dame with 9. Read more»